When I was a college undergraduate, social media sites like Facebook and Twitter were still in their infancy. (MySpace actually ruled the day!) At that time, I had no idea what it meant to promote myself online—and trying to get a handle on it was difficult.​I wasn’t much better at promoting myself in person, either. I didn’t attend any networking events until I was on the verge of graduating from college. And that in itself was later than usual because I had already decided to attend graduate school in Oklahoma.

When I was in college, I took out student loans to help cover the cost of my education. Looking back, I regret borrowing more than I needed to have extra spending cash. But what I really wish I had done was paid off more of the loans’ interest while I was in school.

When I ran into credit card trouble, I scoured the internet looking for financial motivation. As I created a plan to get out of debt, I found numerous financial wealth quotes—and developed a real passion for them.

Mr. J Real Talk

When I went to purchase my first car, I was naïve about how much it would cost. I had my father with me because he was knowledgeable about the car shopping process. Still, I was surprised by how much I spent after adding up all the extra costs, such as taxes and fees.

Mr. J Real Talk

I had the opportunity to attend the 2017 Consumer Federation of America (CFA) annual financial services conference in Washington D.C. The sessions included financial services for lower-income households, the future of payday lending, student loan scandals, credit scoring models, fintech, and fiduciary rule just to name. I will touch on several of the sessions I attended and what you can do in your community to help spread the knowledge.

Payday LendingPayday lending has been a hot topic in the financial services field. There are numerous stories of individuals falling into the payday lending trap such as taking a $2500 loan turning into a $50,000 debt. States have started to act against payday lenders, but the problem continues with payday lenders pushing the federal government to protect their business.

However, credit unions have been taking action with offering similar loans without the excessive interest rate and limit on the times a loan can be taken out. Financial institutions such as credit unions can help the general public by offering loans at low interest, limit on amount borrowed, and the number of times a loan can be issued to the individual

Student LoansThe American consumer is facing a tremendous crisis with student loans. It is not just the typical college graduating with $50,000 in student loan debt now we are including parents and grandparents carrying student loan debt from co-signing on a student loan.

Jeff Herwitz from the Associated Press commented on the crisis by saying, "the U.S. Department is a big pool of loans" and I don't doubt the comment about the U.S. Department of Education.

The current presidential administration is putting restrictions on students loans forgiven who were defrauded by for-profit institutions.

Credit ScoresAn invisible credit person is the person does not have any credit score at any of the three top credit bureaus (e.g., Experian, Equifax, TransUnion). A growing number of millennial students are credit-invisible, and it is becoming a problem because such individuals are finding it difficult to rent an apartment or purchase a vehicle without having a co-signer and even car insurance rates are being based off on credit score.

​To generate a credit score an individual needs to have a minimum of three tradelines which includes installment credit (e.g., student loan), revolving credit (e.g., credit card), and open credit (e.g., home utility bill) and it take a minimum of six months to establish credit.

Payday lending is bad, student loans are pushing marriages further down, and recent college students are becoming the new credit invisible. The conference had informative information, and now it is the duty of financial institutions, educators, reporters, and community leaders to educate people when it comes to financial issues and financially empowers them for the future.

How will you become financially empowered?

Mr. J Real Talk

​I agree with Amin Rajan’s Nov 6, 2017, opinion piece in the Financial Times that “individuals have to spend less, save more, save early and retire late,” that there need to be real-life case scenarios along with fun-inspired simulations in financial literacy curriculum. However, saving more sounds more like a cliché rather than an actual way of living. In a recent study by the Student Loan Hero, 44.2 million American have student loan debt, and family households have on average $5,000 saved up. How can individuals dealing with student debt or working past retirement save more? Or spend less when the costs of living continue to rise, and wages remain stagnant.

Financial literacy curriculum focused on fantasy budget savings tips and saving for family vacations are no longer suffice when college students are graduating with high student loan debts, and elders are working Walmart jobs to make ends meet.

I am not here to denigrate financial literacy curriculum but what I am here to say is that financial literacy curriculum needs to match real-life scenarios with individuals just as Amin Rajan suggested. The scenarios have to deal with individuals who are dealing with school loan debt, elders working until they can no longer walk anymore, and households coping with zero net-worth so we can advocate “spend less, save more, save early and retire late.”

Mr. J Real Talk

​Clothes shopping can be a hassle for men especially when not knowing the right way to mix and match suits with ties, blazers with shoes, or knowing what to wear to your friend's wedding. ​As an avid consumer of clothes, I don’t like to pay the whole price unless I have to because the clothing is necessary. Shopping for clothes does not have to be a hassle and let me give you three places to get deals on clothes

Online StoresOnline stores like Groupon, overstock.com, and Amazon are convenient to get your shopping needs done. Overstock, you can get your suits, shirts, pants, shoes, and accessories all in one site with sales going on all the time. Groupon can be a hit or miss at times. I bought a pair of suites from Groupon and fitted me well and still are holding strong after three years of wearing them. However, I do warn of getting on the email listserve because you will get tempted to shop all the time. Amazon provides great choices in accessories and suit selection. Before shopping online for a suite make sure you know your measurements and be ready to take your suits to a tailor to get it fitted correctly.

Discount StoresThere is nothing wrong with shopping at places like T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, Burlington Coat Factory, or Ross. The bulk of my clothes come from such stores, and I am not ashamed of shopping at such stores. I once bought an Express blazer for $50 at T.J. Maxx and a NorthFace sweater for a whole heck lot cheaper than the original price. To get the best stuff from these stores find out when the new shipment of clothes comes in and be one of the first. Name brand clothing doesn't last that long at discount stores. And don’t forget to check out the clearance racks you might find something of value.

Clearance RacksEvery time I walk into a major department store I go to the sales/discount/clearance rack to find deals. I have been fortunate enough to find amazing brands at cheap low prices by looking at the clearance racks. I will warn to try on the clothes and look for any damages to the clothes because there's a reason why some of the clothes are on the clearance racks.

When it comes to suits, get your measurements from a tailor before shopping online. Have fun and look for the best deals.

How do you do your clothes shopping for the best prices?

Mr. J Real Talk

​​​Business educator and blogger.Follow Mr.J on social media @MrJRealTalk

​Creating a budget is easy but maintain a budget can be a challenge. A person no longer has to create a budget using an excel spreadsheet because there is an increasing amount of budgeting apps available such as Mint and You Need a Budget. However, creating a budget with no goal, realistic mindset, or picking what works for you is as useless as signing up for a gym membership and not knowing what to do. When creating a budget no matter if it's on an app or excel spreadsheet follow these rules.

Set goalsWithout setting goals, you cannot achieve anything. You have to set goals or else you’ll lose motivation for maintaining a budget. Goals can range from paying off $10,000 in credit card debt, saving for a down payment on a house, or saving for a vacation trip. Without setting goals in your budget you run the risk of spending what you don't have and not managing correctly, which can be the cause of severe credit card debt.

Be realisticSaving for a brand new Mercedes Benz in one year when you’re only making $35,000 is not realistic. A realistic budget consists of living within one's means and saving for something that is within purchasing power. When I budgeted my money to pay off my credit card debt I was realistic and knowing that it would not be paid off within one year. I gave my self at the very least three years if not less. I accomplished my goal of paying off $10,000 of debt in 41 months because I was realistic.Pick what works best for youEveryone has their secret recipe for what works best. You have to decide what works best for you. For me having a budget app and writing things down on paper helps me budget my money. There are hundreds of ways to budget your money and each one may have own benefits. Listen to what others budget methods but use what works best for your needs and wants. it's

Starting a budget is easy but maintaining one can be a challenge. Do not lose sight of your money and be aware of your expenses. Spending $3.45 every day on a cup of coffee can add up without even realizing and affect your budget.

So how do you budget your money?

Mr. J Real Talk

​​​Business educator and blogger.Follow Mr. J on social media @MrJRealTalk

​In last weeks Facebook Live show during the finance with attitude segment, I discussed lessons from the original Godfather of personal finance – Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin was more than just a statesman and inventor he provided fantastic personal finance advice: live within your means, don’t keep up with the Joneses, and save every penny. Over two hundred years later the majority of Americans have not learned from Franklin’s words of wisdom.

Rather go to bed without dinner than to rise in debt Benjamin Franklin was obviously not telling people to go hungry every night that would be foolish. The meaning of Benjamin’s quote is to live within your means, but American’s still do not live with their means. U.S. consumer households carry on average $16,425 in credit card debt, and that’s not adding student loan debt. Don’t go shopping for items you know you cannot afford, stop buying expensive coffee, and please stop with the avocado sandwiches for lunch. There is nothing wrong with making your coffee, eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch, and not shopping for items you want.

It is easier to suppress the first desire, than to satisfy all that followThere should be no reason to keep up with others appearances. Years ago a group of colleagues decided to go out for drinks after a busy work week. One of the colleagues bought shots for all of us in the group. Another colleague from the group was upset because he told me he was the one who bought shots for everyone. My colleague was upset and had to show everyone he was the man and decided to buy shots for everyone regardless of the fact that he was in financial limbo. I told my colleague there is no way you can compete against the guy because he is way much wealthier than you are at the moment. The moral of the story is don’t compete with others when it comes to money. If someone buys drinks for the entire group, let them it's not your money wasted on drinks.

A penny saved is a penny earnedSaving a penny or two is not easy especially when television commercials are telling us to spend, spend, and spend some more. However, saving a penny or two can go a long way. Whenever I buy products or services in cash, I deposit the change into a savings piggy bank and at the end of six months it can add up to at least $20. Every penny counts no matter how small or little. I advise you to wait for your penny change whenever you go shopping. If the cashier waits for you to hand over every penny you owe in the transaction why can’t you get your penny that you are owed?

There is no need to get into financial debt if you don’t have so make sure you live within your means, don’t compete against the Joneses, and save every penny.

Last night's Facebook live I discussed LeBron "King" James turning his $1million investment in Blaze Pizza into $25million after a private equity firm invested in the company. How to be an entrepreneur in your own right, and establishing SMART financial goals.

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Mr. J

Mr. J Real Talk Vlog Episode 2 is all about writing SMART Financial Goals. SMART is the acronym for Specific, Measurable, Action-0riented, Realistic, Time-Based. Every financial goal that you create must be written down a specific goal, measure the amount, take action towards that goal, be realistic, and have a deadline.

Mr. J

In last night's Mr. J Real Talk show I discussed the new rules affecting credit scores, developing an elevator pitch, and private student loans.

Credit Scores
In a new ruling public records on credit reports will not affect peoples credit scores. The two public records include tax liens and civil judgements. The new rules will affect 7% of the U.S. population and will raise their scores by at least 20 points. However, the new scores does not mean that banks and other lending institutions will not look at other factors affecting credit score and history such as high credit card debt. The best things to do is lower your credit card debt, pay your taxes, and try not to get sued.

Elevator Pitch
An elevator pitch is a one minute speech to persuade a potential investor you meet in an elevator to invest in your company. In reality the elevator pitch is just a speech about your business said during a business plan competition or investor meeting. In my experience the best elevator pitches come from people who are fully invested in their company, give passion, and do not have to use notecards to give their pitch. I used a template from the Founders Institute to write my pitch for this show and you should too if your having trouble writing your elevator pitch.

Private Student Loans
If you have private student loans you may be in for some luck. The National Collegiate Student Loan Trust recently lost $5 billion in student loan paperwork. If you have a private student loan with the Trust I highly suggest you check to see if your paperwork went missing because you may be off the hook. Let's just keep our eyes and ears open for any other company who loses their paperwork.

Tune in Sunday, July 30 at 9pm CT for the Mr. J Real Talk show live on Facebook Live.

Mr. J

In July 19th, 2017 show Mr. J Real Talk discussed 50cent Effen Vodka deal, the little details of purchasing a vehicle, and how fun in the sun can turn into fun in hell.

Purchasing a Vehicle
When purchasing a vehicle it is important to look at the all the small details before making the purchase. People often over look additional costs such as local and states taxes, license plate fees, and other fees that can add up. Before making the purchase do your research, get a good interest rate on your car loan, give a sizable down payment, and make sure your total car costs do not exceed 20% of your monthly net pay. 50cent Selling his stake in Effen Vodka
Reports are saying that 50cent recently sold his minority stake in Effen Vodka, which made him a cool $60 million. This is 50cent's second successful business ownership venture, the first being the $200 million he made from Vitamin Water when it was bought by Coca-Cola.

Fun in the Sun can turn into Fun in Hell
When vacationing make sure you do your research and not go extremely cheap. There are times when spending a few extra dollars is worth every penny, for example, extra leg room on long international flights and flying direct instead of connections. Trust me spending a few dollars will not only save you the headaches but also from having to spend extra on hotels or missing flights.

Mr. J

As millennials, it is our dream to work for ourselves and have no boss. For many of us, that means becoming “entrepreneurs.” Media outlets have made this profession famous over the last decade—and made it sound easy to achieve success.

Mr. J

I remember the exact moment that I realized inexpensive fast food could hurt my wallet and my health.

I was living in Oklahoma City and preparing to move. I was spending a lot of money on the move, but getting everything ready left me short on time and energy to cook (packing my kitchen stuff didn’t help either). So, I ate nothing but fast food for ten consecutive days. Big mistake.

Mr. J

Three Decembers ago, I was sitting at my desk contemplating a way to ring in 2014 with a positive attitude. I was heavily in credit card debt, owed money for a car I bought in the spring, and my savings was less than $100.

Mr. J

​When I scroll down the news section on my iPhone, I see some news post about the importance of personal finance education. However, society still needs to be reminded the importance of personal finance in schools. What should be discussed is how to correctly apply personal finance education based on the student body being served. Before using personal finance curriculum, educators should ask, “Who is my student body? What do they already know? What topics are of interest?” Would you let your doctor diagnose you with medicine without asking you questions? So why do we let educators teach personal finance to students without doing an analysis and ask questions before applying a personal finance curriculum?

Know the differenceNo school district is identical, and each has different study bodies with different needs. For example, there are school districts where a majority of students are on free or reduced lunch and others were the median family income is in the six figures. So how does an educator teach personal finance when one student body barely has enough to eat and the other has plenty of choices of what to eat?

What is needed is designing a curriculum based on the student body. If your student body lives in an environment where renting an apartment and pre-paid debit cards are the norm it does not make sense to teach students about the foreign stock exchange? I am not saying you shouldn’t look at a later date but know your student body and what they are going through in life.

Ask before applyingWhen I was teaching personal finance to 8th graders, a decent amount was from low-income households that cared more about knowing the difference between gross income and net income than the stock exchange. I also recall a time when a member of the community volunteered to teach a personal finance topic to an inner city school and mentioned her difficult experience.

The individual did not go further into details, but after looking at the curriculum, learning about the student body, and listening about her experience I could see why there was difficult experience. There was no connection between the curriculum, the student body, and the volunteer.

To best serve students do your homework and select personal finance curriculum based on their needs, learn about their backgrounds, and ask questions.

Mr. J

​ I walk into a coffee shop and I see a sign marketing a $10 lunch special. I thought to myself, “$10? Really? Just a few more dollars and I have a dinner.”

The $10 lunch special includes with your choice of salad or sandwich, one piece of fruit, and one bottle of water.

You are more than welcome to purchase your $10 lunch special but let’s put it into perspective. If you spend $10 on the lunch special at least three times a week for the entire year you are spending $1,440 (not including taxes) and this is not including your morning coffee.

With $1,440 you can open a Roth IRA or IRA account or pay off your student loans.

Think twice before purchasing your $10 lunch special because being financially savvy starts with a financial attitude of not spending on useless expenses.

Mr. J

“And I will always love you…” the famous song from Whitney Houston’s Bodyguard soundtrack was the song I thought of when relating credit and love. When you love someone you do things out of the ordinary. The same goes for credit. You should love your credit, care for your credit, and go the extra mile to care for your credit.

Not giving attention to your credit can hurt you in the long run especially when seeking a job in the financial sector, obtaining a mortgage, or applying for a new credit card. Let’s explore how credit and love are the related.

Don’t commit if you’re not readyProtecting your credit is like defending your love one, you can tell people you have a good credit score but do not let them mess it up. A family member once asked me to co-sign with them on a mortgage loan for a house, and I said no. I love my family, but I knew that I would have to be responsible for the loan and I was not ready to commit to the loan. If you do not feel comfortable taking on the responsibility then do not be a co-signer.

Check up Credit card companies are now offering FICO scores updated on a monthly basis. Every time you make a monthly payment check your credit score for changes, good or bad. Don’t forget to do your yearly credit check to monitor what is on your credit. Checking up on your love one is important just like your credit. You may not have the time to get daily updates on your credit, but monthly and yearly check-ups are necessary.

Analyze but don’t obsessWhen checking your credit read what loans you have in your name and what credit cards are open in your name. If anything is out of the ordinary get it fixed. Examine the details but don’t very overly obsess because you may overthink on details that are not important. For example, having several credit cards open is not a bad thing; it helps your credit history. But do not max out all of our cards and do not have numerous credit cards that require yearly membership payment.

Just like in love you want to make sure your relationship is going in the right direction, but you do not want to overthink every detail, you may look obsessive.

Credit and love have similar methods but different goals. Before committing make sure you're ready, check up and analyze your credit.

Mr.J

As a millennial, I tend to lack patience for certain things—like waiting for food at a restaurant. But for my financial portfolio, I recognize that patience is necessary. Building a financial portfolio is a commitment, not a task. It takes a tremendous amount of time.